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Identifying priority sites for low impact development (LID) in a mixed-use watershed
Citation:
Martin-Mikle, C., K. de Beurs, J. Julian, AND P. Mayer. Identifying priority sites for low impact development (LID) in a mixed-use watershed. LANDSCAPE AND URBAN PLANNING. Elsevier Science Ltd, New York, NY, 140:29-41, (2015).
Impact/Purpose:
IMPACT STATEMENT: Identifying suitable sites for implementation of BMP or LID practices is critical for maximizing the effectiveness of respective practices and minimizing costs of construction. This poster presents a simplified means of identifying optimal sites using a GIS-based approach and readily available geographic data. The Best Locator Tool (BLT) is intended for use in urban ecosystems especially by communities with limited management resources.
Description:
ABSTRACT: Low impact development (LID), a comprehensive land use planning and design approach with the goal of mitigating land development impacts to the environment, is increasingly being touted as an effective approach to lessen runoff and pollutant loadings to streams. Broad-scale approaches for siting LID have been developed for agricultural watersheds, but are rare for urban watersheds, largely due to greater land use complexity. Here, we introduce a spatially-explicit approach to assist landscape architects, urban planners, and water managers in identifying priority sites for LID. We use a large, mixed-use watershed in central Oklahoma as a case-study to demonstrate our approach. Our results indicate that for one sub-catchment of the Lake Thunderbird Watershed, LID placed in 11 priority locations can facilitate reductions in nutrient and sediment loading to receiving waters by as much as 16% and 17%, respectively. Our systematic approach for prioritizing LID sites has the potential to facilitate widespread adoption of LID to lessen the effects of urban land use on stream ecosystems.
